


(Let's Be) Criminals

by assholemurphy



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Established Relationship, M/M, Modern AU, Not Beta Read
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-06
Updated: 2015-04-06
Packaged: 2018-03-21 13:02:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,936
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3693275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/assholemurphy/pseuds/assholemurphy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A Modern AU in which Monty is part of a group of teenage runaways and does street magic while Miller picks pockets.</p>
            </blockquote>





	(Let's Be) Criminals

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! This is my first Minty fic, but I wanted to attempt it cause they're adorable, because of that my characterization may be a bit shaky.

Monty stared at his reflection in the dirty glass window, the dark interior provided a wonderful mirror, even with he thin layer of dust. He gave his outfit one last check, he hadn't been too sure about wearing the suit jacket, but they had assured him it looked alright, more professional, so he'd let it go. He fingered the deck of cards in his pocket, mentally psyching himself up for the performance to come. He'd done this a hundred times but he still couldn't shake the nerves that fizzled in his stomach. So much could go wrong, he could get caught, or worse, _Miller_ could get caught, after all, he was much easier to grab.

That was the way they worked, though. Monty distracted the crowd while Miller walked the crowd, lifting wallets and phones, anything they could turn to cash fast. No, neither of them were strangers to the inside of police stations, but that didn't make it anymore fun. If anything, it made it less than, considering the novelty had worn off and given way to annoyance at the detainment and the thought of having to find _another_ new city.

This was their fifth one, and Monty had been working the crowd here for five weeks already, but never in the same place more than twice. If was their best protection, skipping around. Once was nothing, twice was a coincidence, but three times raised suspicion.

Taking a deep breath, he pulled the deck from his pocket and began flipping the cards through his fingers, attracting the attention of a few passersby. He'd begin his act as soon as he saw Miller in the crowd, which shouldn't be long now.

Monty smiled to himself when his saw a familiar face in the crowd, punctual as always, Miller gave him a nod. Time to begin.

“Sir, sir!” Monty called to the nearest member of his 'audience.' “You like magic? Everybody loves magic, of course you do, sir.” Confidence was key. If he acted like he knew they couldn't refuse, then they wouldn't. Influence, Miller had explained when they'd begun. “Would you do me a favor and pick a card? It can be any card.” He fanned the deck out as wide as he could, letting the man draw a card.

Simple, he'd start of simple. A couple easy 'find the card' tricks to get their full attention then he'd move on to better illusions, the kind that would baffle them so completely they wouldn't notice their valuables being pulled from under their nose.

“Show some, anyone, hell, show everyone.” Monty laughed, watching the man show off the card. “Now put it back for me, right there, yeah.” Monty shuffled the deck, the crowd keeping a close eye on him. He noticed Miller starting to mingle about, taking stock of the crowd. “Okay, is this you're card?” Monty asked, flipping over the top card. He knew it wouldn't be and smirked at the disappointed looks from the crowd for a second before schooling his face into a mask of concentration. “Okay, okay, my bad. This one, then?” Nope. “Damn, do you see your card anywhere in here, man? I thought I had that trick down, but I guess not.” He fanned the deck out, face up, for the man to see.

“No.” The man squinted at him skeptically. Monty knew from experience that people didn't take too well to their time being wasted.

“Wow, really? How could I have lost it?” He asked, patting at his pockets for a second before looking back at the man. “Would you check yours?”

“What?” Confusion, his second favorite reaction, right after complete and utter awe.

“Check your pocket, man.”

The guy complied, pulling out a card. “How?”

“Is that your card?”

“Yeah, but how?”

“Magicians and secrets and all that, you know the drill.” Monty shrugged, plucking the card from the man's fingers and slipping it back in the deck. He turned, leaving the baffled man to stare at his back, awestruck. Honestly, he didn't understand it, these people were so easily entertained with a trick he'd learned way back in third grade, it was almost sad how easily the human mind was fooled. And he'd gotten the guys watch.

“You, ma'am, you wanna try? No? No cards?” He flicked his wrist, sending the cards up his sleeve. Yeah, the jacket was definitely a good idea. “Alright, then, I think I've got just the trick for you.” He pulled out a tiny ball out of his pocket. He'd attached it to a serious of strings before hand. This was one of his least favorite tricks, simply because of the amount of effort and preparation that went into it even though, in his opinion, it was a rather cool trick. “I need you to hold this for me, okay?” He held it out to the woman, letting go just a second before she could grab it. The ball stayed in mid air, the woman's eyebrows shooting up into her hairline.

“That's-”

“No, catch it!” Monty exclaimed, reaching out to grab it but the ball only lifted higher, the string pulling tighter. “That's important!” But even as he attempted to catch it, the woman reaching out to grab it but with a well placed 'flail' it jumped away from her hands. Monty frantically reached for the ball, finally catching it with a sigh of relief. “Got it. These things are just so hard to keep still, you know? It's like they just wanna,” He opened his hands, the ball gone and the tiny white butterfly that had taken it's place fluttering away. “Fly away.”

He took pride in the woman's stunned face, she had no idea he'd managed to get her wallet from he back pocket. He pulled out his deck once more. A couple card tricks and three disappearing coins later, he looked up to find an unwelcome guest standing a few feet from him. Cops, talking to a man that looked vaguely familiar, but Monty couldn't place him, exactly, but he knew it spelled trouble. Just fucking perfect.

He looked around the crowd, trying to find Miller to let him know they needed to leave, but Miller was busy removing a wallet from some lady's bag. _Wonderful._ He had to keep the cops attention without causing them to become suspicious, but he wasn't sure how to do it. He couldn't just approach them first, that wasn't how it worked. He wished Jasper was there, he never failed at causing distractions so they could run.

Swallowing thickly, the nerves in his stomach returning with a vengeance, Monty begun flicking cards out of the deck and into the air, keeping the crowds attention as best he could. There was no reason to let the attention shift to Miller, police or not. Maybe they weren't even there for him.

His optimism was stopped dead when the two officers began to approach him with purpose. “Hey, kid, I got a guy here-” Monty watched as the man turned, recognition dawning immediately. “-says you-”

“Nate!” Monty shouted, shattering the sense of calm wonder that had overtaken the crowd.

“Hey, that's my wallet!” Someone screamed, Monty looked up in time to see Miller take off down an alley. Nodding to himself, Monty took a second to look over his shoulder, wondering how quickly he'd be able to get out of sight.

Not quickly enough, it seemed, as a hand clamped down on his shoulder. “Kid, you're gonna be coming with us.”

“The hell I am.” Monty muttered, lifting his boot and driving the heel into the officers shin.

“Shit!”

He tore off, running down the street, a few cards falling from his deck. He cursed and threw the rest down. He had several more, anyway, and if it worked like it did in the movies, the second officer might just slip up. Of course, nothing really happens like the movies and all that came of that particular trick was a lost deck.

He ducked down and alley and scrambled up a fire escape, reaching the top just as the cops turned in. He held his breath and crouched down, his black outfit helping him blend in with the shadows and bars. He stayed there for what felt like forever, though he knew it had only been a few minutes, before standing up and checking for any sign of the police. Noticing none, he descended, the metal catching in his shirt and scraping his side as he dropped down from the last rung.

He hissed in pain, pulling his shirt down quickly. He could deal with it back at the apartment. He took to the side streets and alleys, figuring there was a smaller chance of being seen that way, as he made his way home. It took him half an hour to get there and he collapsed against the door after shutting it behind him, pressing palms into his eyes and taking deep breaths. That had been way too close and now that the adrenaline was fading, the reality of the situation set in. Not only had he been caught and ran from the cops, he'd _assaulted an officer._ He was so screwed.

“Monty?”

He looked up, worry fading somewhat when he saw Miller standing in front of him, a concerned look on his face. Miller was here, he hadn't been caught. They were okay for another day. “Hey.”

“You alright?” Miller asked, holding out a hand to pull Monty up.

“I got scratched, but other than that, I'm alright.”

“Come on.” Miller ordered, walking towards the bathroom, Monty followed, knowing better than to protest. “Shirt off.”

Monty complied and hopped up on the counter before Miller could telling, earning a small smile. “Fire escapes are dangerous.”

“No shit?” Miller chuckled, wetting a rag under the tap. “Maybe you shouldn't play on them, then.”

“I wasn't playing, I was hiding.”

“Well, you should be more careful where you hide.” Miller told him, gently cleaning the dried blood from the scratch.

Monty watched his movements in silence. He liked this part, after they came home when everything was calm for a moment, when it was just them. He knew they'd have to figure out what to do next later, it was obvious they couldn't stay now. That was the deal. It only took one close call to have them packing up and heading to a different city. It was logical, they were runaways, Miller being the oldest at seventeen, they had no parents, no guardians, they'd managed to get out of trouble a few times by sheer luck, but Monty had no wish to test it out again.

“This is going to hurt.” Miller told him a second before the rag was placed on his wound again. Monty hissed, his skin stinging something fierce as Miller treated it with antiseptic. “Sorry, sorry.” Miller hushed him, stroking the side of his face with a gentle hand. “It's done now, though.”

“Hurts still.” Monty told him as he applied a few bandages to it. “Make it better.”

Miller smiled patronizingly and shook his head, pressing a kiss to the bandages. “Better?”

“No.” Monty whined. “Again?”

Miller obliged, kissing Monty's wound again. “Now?”

“Huh-uh.” Monty pouted. “Maybe you should try somewhere else.”

“Oh?” Miller chuckled and brushed his lips along Monty's shoulder, “Like there? Or there?” He kissed Monty's nose.

Monty shook his head and reached out, looping the fingers of one hand through one of Miller's belt loops and placing the other on his neck and pulling him close. “No.”

“Then where?”

Monty rolled his eyes and closed the distance between them, pressing his lips firmly against Miller's before pulling away a second later. “There.”

“Oh, there.” Miller breathed out a laugh. “I guess I can do that.”

“Shut up.” Monty grinned, pulling Miller down again and wrapping his legs around his waist. Miller used this to his advantage, picking Monty up and carrying him out of the bathroom and towards the couch.

Once he'd sat down, Monty in his lap, Miller took control of the kiss, keeping it gentle and lazy. The other's would be back soon and there was really no time for anything more heated disappointing as that may be. They stayed like that for a while, wrapped up in each other, occasionally nipping at the other's lip but for the most part just enjoying the intimate contact.

Too soon for Monty's taste, Miller pulled back, smiling at the boy in front of him. “So, exactly what happened back there, anyway?”

Monty barely suppressed a giggle. “I stole some guy's watch when I put a card in his pocket.”

“Really, Monty?” Miller asked, exasperated.

Monty shifted on Miller's lap a bit before holding up a gold watch. “Really, Nate.”

“Oh my god.” Miller's head dropped onto Monty's shoulder as he groaned.

Monty couldn't hold back anymore and collapsed into a fit of laughter. “He didn't even notice until after he'd left. Then he brought the cops, and, oh, fuck, Nathan, I assaulted an officer.”

_“Again?”_ Miller shook his head in disbelief. “I thought I told you to stop that. Do you even _listen_ to me?”

“Not generally.” He admitted causing Miller's head to tip back with laughter, he looked up as he heard the door open, four other people filing in behind a grinning boy carrying three steaming boxes.

“Yo! We brought pizza!” Jasper called out before noticing the pair. “Oh, gross. Please tell me you have the _rest_ of your clothes _on_.”

“Yes, Jasper.” Miller rolled his eyes as Monty buried his face in his neck, embarrassed. “You wanna put your shirt back on, or?”

Monty nodded, hopping up as Jasper set the pizza boxes on the coffee table. He returned shortly, a clean shirt on and a black wallet in his hand. He set it and the watch down on the table next to the food. “That's what I got.”

“Didn't I tell you not to take things?” Miller huffed out. They'd had the conversation a million times, but Monty refused to stop. He felt more like an actual member of their group like this, being able to actually add something to the pile. “No wonder we keep almost getting caught.”

“Wait, you guys almost got caught?” Jasper looked up from adding his haul to the pile. “Does that mean...?”

“Yeah, it means we have to leave.” Miller confirmed, fetching a bag from the side of the couch and emptying it out.

“Sorry.” Monty shrunk into himself. He'd tried not to think about what was going to happen, but it seemed like he didn't have a choice now.

Miller reached up and tugged him down so he was sitting on the couch next to him. “It's alright. We've been here long enough, anyway.” He said, casting a glance around the group that warned them not to make Monty feel any worse.

“Yeah, moving out sounds great.” Harper chimed in, smiling at Monty. “This city was starting to get boring, it's time to find somewhere cooler.”

“With a better victim pool.” Monroe agreed.

The others nodded, sitting down as they finished emptying the day's haul onto the table. Monty gave them a small smile, grabbing for a slice of pizza but stopping short, his nose wrinkled in disgust. “Jas, why's there bacon on this?”

“Because bacon is good.” Jasper told him, bits of cheese flying from his mouth as he spoke.

“Ew.” Maya side-eyed him as she handed him a napkin. “There's no bacon on the others, Monty. Just the top one.”

“Awesome.” Monty gave her a grateful look as he opened the second box, coming away with a slice for himself and one for Miller.

The night continued as normally as possible. They all agreed they should leave within the next few days, but they'd take tomorrow to pack and decide on a location. They'd made close to seven hundred in cash that night, and Miller would fence the rest of it the next morning. One by one they disappeared into their rooms as the night wore on, eventually leaving Monty and Miller on the couch by themselves once again.

They'd ended up turned around, Miller leaning against the armrest with Monty's back to his chest, their fingers intertwined. They sat in silence for a while, watching the lights outside the window, this was the last they'd be seeing of this city for a long time, and in a way, it was kind of sad. This place had become home to them, and leaving it held the same kind of sorrow it always did, but it had become lessened with each city they'd left as they realized that the places weren't home, they themselves were. They'd all been together for so long, since Monty had been thirteen and ran away with Jasper, his best friend and foster brother, the closest thing to family he'd ever really had. Leaving brought back memories of that night and made him wonder how he'd been so lucky as to go from having one brother to having a full family of his own. He no longer worried about what would happen next or where they'd end up, he had a feeling they'd be able to survive anywhere as long as they were together.

“So,” Monty breathed out a whisper, afraid of disturbing the peace that had befallen the small apartment, “Where to next?”

Miller shrugged and pressed a kissed to the top of Monty's head. “Wherever you want to go, babe.”

Monty smiled and let his eyes drift closed. “Let's go to California, I want to see the ocean.”

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Feedback is loved! You can find my lameness at [assholemurphy](http://assholemurphy.tumblr.com/)


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